The number of victims of traffic accidents taken to Viet Duc Hospital during the National Day (September 2) holiday nearly doubled that of normal days.
Many patients waiting in front of emergency rooms
Most of the patients with serious injuries and multiple traumas were young people.
According to Viet Duc Hospital, from August 31 to September 3, their emergency room received around 500 patients, including 245 traffic accident cases.
On August 31 alone, the hospital treated 82 traffic-related cases in emergency, 28 of them considered serious. The figure fell to 71 cases on September 1, and 72 on September 2. By 3pm on September 3, the hospital received 19 traffic accident victims out of a total 56.
Normally between 12 and 14 accident victims are taken to Resuscitation Ward No. 1 each day, but during this holiday the number rose to 24-28. In many emergency waiting rooms there were two patients to a bed. "The hospital keeps 50 stretchers, but at this time it was still insufficient," said a doctor from the ward.
Due to the sharp rise in traffic accidents over the past few days, operations for other patients in dire need of surgery for ailments such as appendicitis, had to be delayed for more urgent procedures.
Many of the fatalities had not been wearing helmets, leading to brain injuries. Most injuries that occurred in Hanoi's centre were not as serious as those that happened in places farther away from the city.
